Since the advent of computerized word processing, the ability to "cut and paste" selected portions of text hand-keyed in from a document has been a standard feature in nearly all computer word processing programs The applications programs permit the text entered from a document to be manipulated within the memory of the computer for rearrangement for a particular new output document Recently, hand held optical scanners have given traditional cut and paste methods added capability and increased convenience by allowing the user of such devices to select and scan lines of text or illustrations from printed hard copy material and store them in the memory of a computer.
A problem with hand scanners is that the user must pay close attention and have a steady hand and good eye in order to get good scanning results Otherwise, portions of the desired material to be scanned may be missed. This is especially true in the areas of the scanned material adjacent the outside edges of the scanning beam. It is therefore typical to require an additional guide device to provide proper tracking of the scanning instrument, as well as provide an instantaneous record of the area scanned so that repeated passes to recover missed material are obviated
The art has numerous teachings relating to writing and recording instruments. For example, it is known in the art to combine a light source with a writing instrument to facilitate the user of the writing implement. This first group of writing/lighting references includes U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,979,602 (Barnett, 1961) and 4,518,274 (Hanggi, 1985) which provide writing instruments with various illumination means. U.S. Pat. No. 3,879,859 (English, 1975) teaches combining a light source with a marking pen for use in combination with a specially adapted translucent screen as a method of visual instruction for young students. Other examples of a combination flashlight and writing instrument include U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,963,914 (Browning et al., 1976) and 4,047,017 (Herring, 1977).
It is also known in the art to provide a pen or like writing instrument with means to electronically record or input data for use in tele-autographic and graphic communication systems. This second group of writing/recording devices include U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,937,917, (Anthony, 1957), 3,035,118 (Scheuzger, 1962). U.S. Pat. No. 3,444,465 (Teixeira, 1969) teaches to use a standard metallic ballpoint pen as a probe for a graphic communication system. U.S. Pat. No. 4,034,155 (Muller et al., 1977) discloses an electrical sensing writing pen capable of sensing and amplifying a varying electrostatic field. U.S. Pat. No. 3,761,620 (Graven, 1973) teaches to use a light source that is housed within a pen (pen light) to activate a grid or matrix of light sensing semiconductors under a specially constructed writing medium for graphical data input of the pen strokes of the light pen on the writing surface to a computer display screen.
A common thread among the above mentioned second group of combinational writing/recording instruments is that they require a specialized writing surface and/or transmitting apparatus in order to cooperate with the graphic display and memory of the computer
It is also known in the prior art to provide a hand held optical scanning device for scanning printed text or graphic illustrations from a hard copy documents to the memory of a computer. These scanning devices, commonly referred to as hand scanners are generally classifiable as "Graphics" hand scanners or "Optical Character Readers" (hereinafter designated generally as "OCR") hand scanners. Both Graphics and OCR hand scanners rely on bit-mapped graphics and use a bright light (eg. a row of light emitting diodes (LEDs), usually red) located under the device to light up the san area.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,475,240 (Brogardh et al., 1984) discloses a Graphics-type scanning device for the simultaneous generation and detection of markings for data input into a computer. Examples of commercially available Graphics hand scanners include: The Complete Hand Scanner by The Complete PC; the Handy Scanner HS-2000 DFI Inc.; ScanMan by Logitech Inc.; the DataSweep 1 and DataSweep PencilWand by Soricon Corporation; and the PB-PS1000 Pocket Scanner by Packard Bell.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,553,035 (Malinsky et al , 1985) discloses a hand held scanner using an optical character recognition system which is used for converting makings on a surface to an electrical signal. Examples of commercially available OCR hand scanners include the Saba Handscan by Saba Technologies Inc., and the Transimage 1000 by Transimage Corp.
While scanners in general do not require a specialized writing surface in order to scan text and transfer the image to a screen display, hand held scanners in particular do have other drawbacks in addition to the serious drawback of not being able to show a record on the hard copy of what has been previously scanned.
A scanner translates a hard-copy image into a computer image by shinning a light source on the image to be scanned and then measures the light reflected from the picture. It then converts the highest reading (whites) to 0s and the lower reading (blacks) to 1s. More sophisticated scanners can approximate the levels of grey found in the picture by measuring the intensity of the black on the picture so that it can generate replicable dot patterns in the stored image.
Hand scanners have problems with their ability to distinguish between areas of varying or poor contrast. For example, halftones are problems for Graphics hand scanners, and are registered either as all white or an undesirable shade of grey.
Similarly, even small amounts of grey in the white background of printed black text causes character recognition difficulties for most OCR scanners. Low grade white paper, such as is commonly used for newspapers and magazines or recycled paper, only appears white to the human eye. Such "white" paper really contains a myriad of colors and printing on them is difficult for the scanners to distinguish. The scanner's misread incidence goes up dramatically to the point where the resulting "read" is gibberish.
Thus, there is a definite need in the art to provide a hand held scanner that has improved contrast and resolution capabilities There is also a need for providing a hand scanner with means for physically marking the hard copy scanned material so that the user has a record of what has been previously scanned.